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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28688106">They Bid Me Take My Place Among Them</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfsheart/pseuds/Wolfsheart'>Wolfsheart</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Kiss Prompt Series [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Kissing, Loki in Valhalla, M/M, Natasha Romanov in Valhalla, Post-Endgame, Tony Stark in Valhalla, Valhalla, kiss prompt</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 07:20:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,293</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28688106</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfsheart/pseuds/Wolfsheart</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony wakes up after the final battle with Thanos, only he's not in New York anymore, and more surprising where he finds himself is who comes to welcome him there.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Loki/Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Kiss Prompt Series [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2102697</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>109</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>They Bid Me Take My Place Among Them</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittenCosmonaut/gifts">KittenCosmonaut</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>From the <a href="https://teadrinkingwolfgirl.tumblr.com/post/638632940870451200/send-me-a-ship-and-a-number-and-i-will-write-a">Send me a Ship and a Number and I will Write a Kiss</a> Prompt List on Tumblr.  </p><p> </p><p>  <em>from herroyalfluffiness: 26. As an apology FrostIron (Tony/Loki)</em></p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tony screamed as the pain of a million suns flayed his right arm and side of his face.  His mind roiled from the sight of the blackened battlefield, bodies fallen and wounded, the shouts and screams of his teammates – and that day, they were all fucking teammates, every last one of them, each and every familiar and strange face, whether they knew each other's names or not.  They were a team and a family come together from all reaches of Earth and space and perhaps afterlife, given that Bruce had resurrected them all from the dead. </p><p>Well, he wasn't sure about <em>all</em>.  He didn't remember seeing Nat with them...and for some reason, there seemed to be another face missing from the fray.  Someone for whom extracting justice from Thanos should've been a given. </p><p>Now...now Tony screamed and wailed at the pain that scraped at him in neverending torment as he lay there on the ground. </p><p>The ground...</p><p>...the ground that no longer felt or smelled familiar. </p><p>Hands cupped his face, and thumbs gentled over his jaws, his cheekbones.  He gasped at the shock of it, at the smooth touch even on the side of his face that had been wrecked by his own snap that brought an end to the battle, and before he could scream again, a voice sought to calm him. </p><p>"Shhh...Anthony Stark...it's alright.  You are safe now...you are...you are safe." </p><p>When he opened his eyes, he saw two deep green ones gazing back at him with affection he did not expect to find from them.  Of course, the last time he'd looked into these eyes, they were this green, but before that time...</p><p>"Weren't your eyes blue once, God of Mischief?" Tony asked and winced when his throat felt like it had been raked over a cheese grater. </p><p>"Careful, Stark," Loki warned.  He kept his hands on Tony's face to help him ground in reality.  The reality of where he was.  "Anthony," he softened his tone even more.  "Let me help you to your feet." </p><p>Tony snorted and started to tug his face free of the Trickster's hands, unsure why this former enemy was being so kind to him while he lay there dying. </p><p>"Shouldn't you be running from your brother about now?  I'm sure he'll either be happy to pummel you into the ground.  Or hug you.  I'm not sure which would be worse right now," Tony snarked. </p><p>That made Loki chuckle. </p><p>"I would welcome his hug as he still owes me one from when I helped him end Ragnarok," the younger prince of Asgard retorted. </p><p>Loki shifted around until he was behind Tony, and he used that strength he wasn't known for to lift the Midgardian to his feet with the barest effort.  He continued to hold Tony against his chest until he was sure his legs wouldn't give out on him. </p><p>"Whoa...that was...less painful than I was expecting," Tony stated and then he had the chance to look around at his settings.  "Wait a minute.  I'm not in Kansas anymore, am I?" </p><p>"What is it with you and Captain Rogers and references from that movie?" Loki asked and shook his head. </p><p>Once he was certain that Tony wouldn't just fall down again, Loki stepped away from him, returning to where they were face to face, though Tony was preoccupied with gawking at his surroundings. </p><p>"Beautiful, isn't it?"</p><p>Tony blinked then tore his eyes away from the view.  He could see what he thought were the Northern Lights shimmering around the whole area, so he assumed they were in Norway or Iceland.  Maybe Finland even. </p><p>"It's amazing.  I take it just inside those walls are some of those...cabins where you can watch the lights, huh?" </p><p>It was Loki's turn to show surprise. </p><p>"I beg your pardon?  Cabins...lights?"  He followed the nod of Tony's head toward the shimmering colorful lights.  "Oh...you think this is...that those are the Aurora Borealis around the northern portion of your planet?  Oh...Anthony, no." </p><p>He stepped closer again, and he set his hand to Tony's chest, and this time, Tony felt his hand.  They looked together, and Tony's suit was gone, though Loki already knew that. </p><p>"Wait...where's my suit?  Asshole, what...where did you magic my suit to?" Tony demanded and lifted the hand that had worn the Infinity gauntlet, ready to snap Loki into oblivion. </p><p>Only the gauntlet was gone.  The stones were gone.  Tony's suit was gone, and now he was wearing an outfit similar to Loki, who incidentally was also not wearing armor.  The difference was that while Loki was in black trousers and a soft green tunic trimmed in black and gold knotwork, Tony's was similar pants and a red tunic trimmed in black and gold.  The knotwork trim matched Loki's in fact. </p><p>Then Tony's gaze fell to his hand, and there were no wounds on it.  No burns, no scarred flesh.  He trailed his other hand up that arm to find the whole thing healed.  He touched the right side of his face.  Nope.  Everything perfectly smooth save his trimmed goatee. </p><p>"Alright, Mischief, what the hell's going on here?  How long was I out?  Is this...New Asgard?  Is that what happened?  Thor said Thanos killed you, but...did you really wind up in New Asgard and get healed...and then they brought me there, too, for some of your Asgardian healers to look at?" Tony rambled. </p><p>He looked over at the gates again and caught an iridescent shine to them that reminded him of Mother of Pearl or even wet opal caught in the right light.  Something about this poked at the back of his head.  He'd never been to New Asgard, but a voice in his head told him this wasn't it. </p><p>"You mean my brother's settlement in Norway?  No.  No, this is a place far grander than that, though I must say that what I've seen of New Asgard, it is very impressive.  Not, of course, due to its new king's leadership since all he does is sit and play video games and mourn the past instead of celebrate it as we were both taught to," Loki answered. </p><p>"Then where..." </p><p>"I'd hoped it would be evident without me having to spell it out for you, Anthony.  You're in Valhalla.  Both of us are.  We...died.  I died protecting Thor from Thanos so that he might help to save your world...to save all of the worlds.  You died actually saving everyone that Dr. Banner brought back," he explained.  "I'll take you inside soon.  I thought you might prefer being introduced to it slowly.  Out here where it's still quiet.  It can get quite...boisterous inside.  All those...celebrating warriors, after all." </p><p>Tony stared up at Loki and could see in his eyes that even he wondered still how he managed to score a ticket to this particular afterlife. </p><p>"You didn't expect to wind up here, did you?" he asked the adopted prince, immediately catching the bittersweet smile and gentle shake of his head.  "How...did you wind up here then?  Obviously, you died...like Thor said." </p><p>"I died, but like Thor said would depend on how he described my death.  Though we did finally...seem to bury the axe and not in each other's skulls," Loki began.  "I may have upset him a little before my death, as I had the Tesseract on me when Thanos found us, but had I left it on Asgard, it merely would've fallen into the void and Thanos would've had it sooner or later anyway."  Loki shrugged an elegant shoulder.  "But apparently my death...as unplanned as it was on my part...was deemed honorable enough by the Valkyries...the ones now in Valhalla who choose the slain." </p><p>His gaze fixed itself on Loki while he spoken.  Tony found himself mesmerized by Loki's voice, though it wasn't the first time he'd noticed that it was beautiful.  Or that Loki was beautiful, for that matter.  However, he'd never had a chance to contemplate just how stunning before on account of having to fight Loki and the Chitauri to save the Earth.  Then Loki was whisked away and imprisoned for life.  Kinda hard to ask a guy out on a date when he's in alien bad guy jail in a different realm. </p><p>Loki looked at Tony and caught him staring.  He blushed and noticed that made Tony smile wider at him, so Loki had to clear his throat and turn his attention back to the colorful horizon. </p><p>"How did I wind up here, Loki?" Tony asked in a kind voice.  "I'm not...Asgardian or Jotun or...whatever else comes from your main realms.  I'm not religious...I don't even believe in Christian heaven.  So...why am I here?" </p><p>The blush on his cheeks began to face as his smile grew wider.  Loki turned once more to face Tony and even stepped closer.  He lifted his hand and touched Tony's cheek. </p><p>"That's simple.  You're here because I asked the Valkyries to bring you here.  To choose you as a warrior of honor to reside in the halls of Valhalla, where you are more than worthy to live.  Friend to Thor, protector of your world, savior of all of the worlds...and you sacrificed your own self, your family, your life...your ability to be with your daughter while she grows into womanhood.  You, Anthony Stark, are more worthy of these halls than you give yourself credit for, and it matters not that you follow no religion of your own."  Loki stroked Tony's cheek with his thumb, and his eyes glittered with affection when he saw the color rise to the Midgardian's face. </p><p>"That...I mean, you know because I didn't really...treat you that great, and...you spoke for me...," Tony stammered and had to lick his lips.  It was hard to concentrate, and he wasn't sure if it was from Loki's lovely, generous words or the way he stared into Tony's soul or even the way he touched him so tenderly with a hand that had once gripped his throat and thrown him through the window of his building. </p><p>Maybe he was being a heel toward Pepper and Morgan, but he found that he didn't want the touch to stop. </p><p>Was that okay?</p><p>Instead of speaking, Loki lowered his head and brushed his lips to Tony's, and Norns help him, but Tony's parted just enough when the shock of being kissed hit him that their mouths did that...sticky-pull thing that made the prince's knees go weak.  It was more of a response than he'd expected; in truth, he expected a fist to his nose.  He wasn't expecting Tony's hands to hold his hips and draw him closer. </p><p>"I'm sorry," came the first words from Loki's tingling lips when they pulled back.  "I'm so sorry, Anthony, that I died too quick instead of coming with Thor to stop Thanos before you all lost so much.  I'm sorry that I didn't stop Thanos on the Statesman, and had I half a brain in that moment, I would've done more than pull daggers on the Mad Titan, but I panicked when he nearly killed my brother.  I should've done so much to...stop him, and my stupid death meant the rest of you lost so much...and meant that you are here instead of where you belong with your loved ones.  I'm..." </p><p>Tony kissed him again, as much to shut up the Trickster's apologies as to have that mouth on his again.  One hand raised up and tangled in Loki's hair.  Loki's hands cupped the back of Tony's neck, and this time, their kiss deepened and made their hearts beat faster. </p><p>Their hearts. </p><p>Tony's heart. </p><p>He jerked back suddenly and pressed one hand to his chest, feeling nothing under his tunic but his chest.  His smooth chest.  The arc reactor was gone.</p><p>"You don't need it here, Anthony.  You don't need that anymore," Loki told him and pressed his own hand against Tony's chest.  "I'm..." </p><p>"Don't you dare say you're sorry again, Mischief.  I don't need the arc reactor, and you don't need to apologize.  I did what I needed to do...just as you did.  Perhaps, if you're just feeling guilty still, you can work off that guilt by telling me how you pissed off the Fruit of the Loom Grape," Tony stated and caught one of Loki's hands, lacing their fingers together.  It felt weird to be holding someone's hand who wasn't Pepper's or their daughter's, but then being in a quasi-Viking afterlife was pretty weird, too. </p><p>Loki laughed, and Tony decided that he liked that sound a lot. </p><p>"I can do that, Anthony.  I promise.  First, we'll need to settle you into your rooms, and..." </p><p>He turned slightly, and Tony could see someone standing near the gate.  Someone with hair the color of pale ice and autumn fire that had been braided and fell over their shoulders.  Someone distinctly <em>woman-shaped</em> and recognizable, even at a distance. </p><p>"...and as you can see, you aren't the only one I asked the Valkyries to retrieve.  Natasha did go before you, after all," Loki finished and waved to Valhalla's newest shield maiden.  Then he squeezed Tony's hand and started to lead him toward Natasha and the gates.  "So, you see, you won't be alone." </p><p>Tony squeezed back and waved at Natasha, resisting the urge to run at her like in a movie.  Still, the relief and joy in his heart to be here, to see a friendly face, and to find something comforting in the eyes of a former enemy allowed Tony to release his old life and embrace his new adventure. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Title comes from the <a href="http://www.odins-gift.com/pclass/lothere.htm">Norse prayer used in 13th Warrior</a>.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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